Chapter Text
Chapter One: Bad Dreams & Curly Fries
Stiles ran.
The forest closed in on him, branches clawing at his arms as his feet pounded against the uneven dirt path. His chest burned, each breath a ragged gasp. Behind him, he heard it—low growls, sharp teeth snapping, the thunderous rhythm of paws.
The wolf was faster. Stronger. Hunting him like prey.
He wanted to scream for Scott, for anyone, but when he glanced to the side, he saw them. The pack. His pack. Lydia, Malia, even Scott himself. They weren’t running to help him. They weren’t even trying.
They were laughing.
Their voices carried through the trees, cruel and sharp, twisting in his chest worse than the claws chasing him.
The ground gave out beneath him and—
He jolted awake with a sharp inhale, his chair screeching against the classroom floor. Every head turned toward him, eyes wide. Whispers rippled through the room.
Everyone looked.
Everyone but the pack.
They sat like he wasn’t even there. Not a glance, not a smirk, not even irritation. Just… nothing.
That silence was louder than the dream.
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By the time the final bell rang, Stiles felt wrung out, hollow. He couldn’t face the silence in the Jeep, not yet, so he just walked. His feet carried him to a glowing neon sign: Manny’s Diner.
The smell of grease and coffee wrapped around him as he slipped inside, ordering curly fries and a milkshake before sliding into the booth furthest from the window.
For a few blessed minutes, it was just him. Him and fried potatoes.
The door chimed, and a boy walked in. Blonde, younger than most of the guys who came through here, but there was something… different. His eyes flickered with something Stiles couldn’t place—innocence and weight all at once.
Jack.
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Jack hadn’t meant to wander from his errand. Dean had sent him to pick up their order, simple as that. But halfway to the counter, something tugged at him. An invisible pull that led his eyes straight to the boy in the back booth.
A boy with tired eyes and a milkshake straw clenched between his teeth like it had personally wronged him.
Before Jack even realized it, his feet were moving.
“Hi,” he said, awkward but genuine.
The boy blinked at him. “Uh… hi? Did you… need directions, or…?”
Jack shook his head quickly. “No. I just… felt like I should come talk to you.”
The boy narrowed his eyes, suspicious. “Wow. Zero-to-creepy in under ten words. New record.”
Jack’s expression faltered, uncertain. The boy sighed, shaking his head. “No, sit. I was kidding. Mostly. I’m Stiles.”
Jack slid into the booth across from him. “Jack.”
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They talked. Or rather, Stiles talked. Words spilled from him in a rush—sarcasm and tangents, half-jokes that Jack didn’t fully get but smiled at anyway. He listened, wide-eyed, soaking it in.
Most people didn’t like when Stiles went off like that. He’d seen it in the way his pack sighed, the way teachers pinched their brows.
But Jack? Jack leaned in.
When Stiles finally trailed off, muttering, “Sorry, I get annoying sometimes,” Jack shook his head immediately.
“I like it. I like the way you talk.”
Stiles blinked, caught off guard. Heat flushed up his neck, and he fumbled for his milkshake. The cup slipped, tipping over, chocolate spreading across the table.
“Crap, sorry—”
They both grabbed napkins, leaning in at the same time. Fingers brushed. Just a second, but enough. Enough for the air to crackle, for the diner lights to flicker—then cut out completely.
The whole diner went dark.
Stiles froze, staring at Jack, whose smile was now wide and bright even in the shadows. His stomach dropped in a way that had nothing to do with fries. Why the hell does he look so good right now?
The door burst open. Two men stormed in, older, heavier with suspicion. Dean and Sam. Their eyes locked on Jack immediately.
Stiles pushed out of the booth fast. “Yeah, uh, definitely my cue to leave. Good luck with the… blackout, Zap Boy.”
Jack stood, almost reaching for him. “Will I see you again?”
Stiles paused at the door. “I’ve got a feeling you will.”
When the boy disappeared into the night, Dean rounded on Jack. “What the hell just happened in here?”
Jack only smiled softly. “A boy.”
Sam and Dean shared a look, equal parts baffled and concerned.
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✨ End of Chapter One.